Nearly any SQL topic presented at times in a slightly eclectic manner.

PASS presentation: What would you like to hear about?

So I generally speak at PASS every year. Unless I've offended the powers that be, I will again. So, I have an open question to colleagues and readers and those that have come to my sessions - what would you like to know more about? Perhaps everyone could use this post as a way to decide on topics. PASS is a very user-group oriented conference focusing just on SQL Server (with about 2000 attendees - it's big) if you've never been to one. I'm interested in getting input ahead of time from potential topics, based in reality, your every day jobs. What issues do you face? What features vex you? What gremlins haunt your servers? (yeah, I'm a little strange, I admit it).

Let's hear it - sound off everyone. The conference is for you, so the more input you give ahead of time, the better it will be.

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Comments

Why do you speak at PASS if you've nothing to say? I don't intend that to sound as harsh as electronic communication might imply.

To borow from your bio (see About James Luetkehoelter below) it says "I am passionate about what I do". So, what would that be?

I've went to PASS last year and it is a good place to get general information but very little of it is the hardcore stuff I hoped for. You might try for the basics since no one even does the basics well these days, e.g. disk planning, layout, capacity calculations, optimization etc.

Your eccentric. Such people tend to be really bright. So that's kewl. Your passionate, so your highly motivated. That's very good. If you're "over the top" that means your not afraid of taking risks! That's best of all. If all this is true you can take on the burden of tackling LINQ and the entity framework. Now I'm not talking about the "how" of it. I'm sure there will be plenty of people presenting point and click slides. What I am talking about is the "why" and "what" of it. LINQ/EFM dwarfs everything else in terms of importance in S2008. It's a reflection of a movement in a different direction from what everyone is used to. It's also a reflection of a change in attitude. When I look for sql folks tackling the subject what do I find? Frighteningly little or nothing! Now let me say if you're willing to make the case that sql folks can simply ignore the subject, have at it:) If you even want to make the case that it simply represents an isolated piece of technology go for it. Some sql folk are waxing

nostalgic about past 4GL/xbase languages when discussing LINQ. So it may be that many sql folks think it's quite the same idea and wonder why it's structure is different and possibly inferior to what was. Well LINQ is different, it's comparing apples and oranges, and it can't possibly be the same. But how can folks really get a grasp of such a comparison if they don't really understand the "what" of LINQ. Trying to explain "what" it is isn't easy especially to those sql folks who are not familiar with net or any other contemporary strongly typed object oriented runtime environment. I think MS is finding out that it's a challenge. Even trickier is to explain the "why" of it. The motivation for it. Surely it didn't come out of thin air:) And the "why" involves taking risks. You may frighten or alienate people:) The "why" cuts to the heart of what most folks believe in. LINQ is a departure. It will have significant implications for what development is and will be like in the future. It will take a very unique person to put all these ideas together so they'll be really understood. Interestingly, all the answers about LINQ are right on the MS website. All that's required is to dig around and back thru the years to find them. With over eight years of development this shouldn't be surprising:) But how many sql folks have bothered to do this homework? From the looks of it very, very few. Presenting concepts is much harder than presenting code. It takes a very special kind of guy to connect the dots here:)

I'd be happy to share with you an extensive MS list of articles/notes thru the years about the subject.

best,

steve

March 4, 2008 9:29 PM

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About James Luetkehoelter

I am passionate about what I do - which is DBA, development, IT and IT business consulting. If you don't know me, haven't met me or have never heard me speak, I'm a little on the eccentric side. One attendee recently described me as being "over the top". Yup, that about says it - because I only speak on topics that I'm passionate about.